Fallen Asleep in Christ (1 Corinthians 15:18)
2023-10-18
Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. (1 Corinthians 15:18)
Paul was using a hypothetical scenario as if Christ had not risen from the dead and stating the consequences. This would mean that all who are asleep in Christ would have died hopeless and are gone, destroyed, and lost forever. Quite the contrary; those who have fallen asleep in Christ have not perished and can never perish. True never-ending life is in Christ. Since we are in Him, we cannot ever be lost. We are forever born in Him.
Now “fallen asleep in Christ” is not soul sleep. We fall asleep in Christ because we have already met our death in Christ with Him. Our sin and flesh were already judged in Christ. It is more appropriate to say our bodies have fallen asleep once they have breathed their last breath, because we will rise again in new bodies at the end of the age.
His life is our life; and we know His life will never perish.